NBA-Clippers lose five first-round draft picks, fined $30 million after Leonard probe

Sept 2 : The NBA came down hard on the Los Angeles Clippers, stripping the team of five first-round draft picks, imposing a $30 million fine and suspending owner Steve Ballmer for a year over salary cap circumvention tied to Kawhi Leonard.

After a year-long probe, the NBA said in a statement on Wednesday that an independent investigation found a pattern of misconduct and multiple significant rules violations by the Clippers organization.

The league had launched an investigation into the ​Clippers following media reports that Leonard, a two-time NBA champion, was paid by a now-bankrupt environmental firm that had close ties to Ballmer as a way to circumvent league rules that ​restrict the total amount a team can spend on its player payroll.

The reports ​said Leonard had a four-year, $28-million endorsement contract with the firm but the twice NBA champion was ‌alleged ⁠to have provided no work as part of the deal.

As part of the penalties announced by the NBA, Ballmer is suspended from all league and team activities for one year "for knowingly seeking to help Leonard obtain off-court income opportunities."

"I am deeply disappointed by the flagrant violations of our rules and by the Clippers’ institutional and leadership failures that led to this misconduct," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "The severity of the penalties reflects the seriousness of the violations.”

CLIPPERS REJECT NBA FINDINGS, SEEK ARBITRATION

The Clippers said in a statement they "vehemently reject" the NBA's findings, calling them the result of a "biased" investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative rather than facts and evidence.

"What the league told us privately differs from what it announced today publicly, and they have not